Downtown Spice Shop Celebrates Opening

opened its doors Oct. 6 in downtown Hinsdale, but it wasn't until the store's Tuesday-evening open house—with fellow Hinsdale business people in attendance—that owner/operator David Trout cut a ribbon with a big pair of Chamber of Commerce scissors and made the opening at 42 S. Washington St. feel official.

“Not every town is so enthusiastic about helping local businesses,” Trout said. “We just felt our store fit in. … It just felt right.”

A few things to know about Savory Spice Shop:

• David Trout and wife Darice operate one of 15 Savory Spice Shops in the U.S. There are four company-owned shops in Denver and 11 franchises around the country supplied by the company.
• The couple was living in Colorado when they discovered Savory Spice Shop. At the time, David was writing his dissertation and Darice was teaching. David had been admittedly “cooking to procrastinate” during his studies, and the couple fell in love with the spice shop. The couple recently moved back to Illinois and decided they wanted to open a shop of their own.
• The shop contains approximately 400 dried herbs and spices and some 140 hand-blending seasonings. Extracts, dips, and coffee products are also available. “There’s something for just about everybody,” David said.
• The Washington Street building Savory Spice Shop is located in has been around since at least the 19th century, according to David, and possibly even longer. The history enthusiast has learned that the space has in the past been a candy store and a hardware store.
• The store is open Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
• In short: “We sell a lot of spices and we emphasize quality and selection,” David said. “But we also emphasize service and we wanted to incorporate that early 20th century general-store-ish personal relationship with customers.”